I have always been interested in images of broken glass or ceramic (or anything fragile broken) since I worked on political theme which required me to rethink about the society ; how the society works, inequality of people, ruling class controlling the majority of people, how successfully they manage to hide and all dirty truths(corruption) and about their hypocrisy, pretending to be innocent and truthful, how smoothly it all works in the society with no problem…

I believe the images of broken pieces of fragile materials and the processes of putting pieces back and fixing it as the original, enables me to express how I generally feel about corrupted society. There would be thousands and millions of examples of corruption if I would find. The case of [corruption/dishonest/ hidden truth] is found not only in politic, but also in our ordinary life ===

On a personal level, it could be someone tricking other people with lies, simply to benefit themselves but, theses corruption on personal level would be hard to be discovered and investigated since it doesn’t affect to many people at the same time and there would be no information or evidences of what happened like news so that judging upon the personal case is difficult.

However, when it comes to politics, information about the corruption case is given by media, with relatively accurate facts and objective evidences. Moreover, lies by politicians are more accessible for public to find out as we are always exposed to news. Political issues related to dishonesty and irregularity are constantly delivered through TV and radio, even though we do not wish to pay attention on those issues. Easy accessibility to the whole story and strong effects of news in our ordinary life are perhaps why I seem more influenced and engaged with political issues, rather than casual lies in human relationship.

Despite of my efforts to represent clear message and theme in my work, most of people find it difficult to understand my work at first because I do not represent conceptual and symbolic meanings behind the work in a direct way. For that reason, it’s understandable for me that some people criticize, assuming if I didn’t realize the possibility of failure in communication with audiences or if I sort of neglected to find more effective ways to communicate. Unfortunately, my critical views of politics and the society does not seem to be explained enough in a direct way; the way that people can easily pick up without struggling.

The main reason for a poor communication in my work is symbolic objects and performances which are not directly applied to any political case; A piece <the broken-unbroken vase> does not reveal it’s identity directly; There is no sign or text indicating anything specific. (ex/ such as pattern of Nazi or North Korea or any Political party with corruption)

Concerns for more successful communication ; helping audiences to understand it’s theme without too much struggling.

===>

Solution 1. / More specific subject?

So I had been considered the way to clarify and narrow down my subject from the general idea of politics to a specific example of it; Propaganda in North Korea. Relying on the fact that propaganda is used in any kind of political parties in different countries throughout the world, I became interested in North Korea as an extreme example to show how effectively propaganda can work in a particular society.

However, getting people engaged to the matters

Solution 2. / Stick on the main idea (breaking objects), but showing more series and detailed marking progresses. ::: Advise from tutorial

It can help the piece to be more understandable because the processes of putting pieces back one by one, is an indirect way of showing me struggling to reach to the truth, my willingness and passion to find unbiased – reality amongst all the fakes around me.

* video/ performance or me repairing broken objects piece by piece / for such a long time.

(The longer it takes, the more struggling it suggests. The more efforts, desperation to find out undiscovered truth: the complete structure of objects)

* Show the gradual process of broken object repair

; from the stage of all little broken pieces —-> to the stage of completion that all pieces are fitted together.

===== 2.it could be a series of different size/ different shape/ different material of object to be broken.

ex) broken glass table that is broken to pieces but still ‘functioning’ as a furniture.

broken glass sheet or broken bottles.

===========================================================

Further Practice… Plans à

1. Experiment materials ; breaking bottles –

Bear bottle is one of the ordinary glass objects with a typical shape that everyone can easily recognized. What if I break a beer bottle and try to repair it by placing broken pieces? The broken parts of bottle would be quite obviously recognized because of it’s unique shape.

*Place the images of bottle /

The original shape VS broken piece by piece à sketchbook.

Broken pieces of one glass bottle. Apart from some part with obviously recognisable shape (such as Top and Bottom part of bottle), the rest of pieces are almost impossible to be placed at the original place……

*Play with images of broken pieces of a bottle à sketchbook.

Once broken pieces from different bottles all mixed.

2. More practices of <Broken&Unbroken> on various objects.

* A practice using a glass ball. / Sellotape on broken pieces

—>

Function/ shape are kept as the original, but technically broken.

<Image research>

google image ; broken jar.

<Image research>

<Image Research>

Idea — Putting broken glass sheet on the table frame, the glass would stay straight…..?? or slightly curved as it would heavy in the middle part without metal frame supporting……………. The table would still be able to function as the table//// having heavy stuffs on table or a person sitting on table…..?

However, that the glass is all cracked and broken are clearly seen as the glass sheet is fixed with transparent……………

<Image Research> Idea.

I found a glass sheet with Cheesy Red Rose picture on.

Would having a specific image clarify my theme……..? After breaking it;;;; Would re-placing little parts of rose image be interesting practice related to my theme….???

Could a performance that sneakily hiding or un-revealling some parts of rose fragments and replacing them with IMITATED pieces be relevant to my practice….??? What if I make totally similar looking pieces as replacements to the original pieces……??? The final outcome would look almost exactly same as the original(before it’s broken), although in fact, the object went though all that processes;;;

< BREAKDOWN – REPAIR – REPLACEMENT >

It can be replaced by alternative materials such as WOOD/ CERAMIC / PLASTIC ;;; as long as I can manage to make it look REAL.

<Image Research> – 3rd year studio / Observation.

I saw this ceramic jar piece and couldn’t just pass by, becoming extremely curious about what this piece about and how ‘she’ made this piece; what sort of materials and technics used!!!

<Image Research> A jar in a local Charity Shop

The jar made by little pieces of glass (But I guess it has an actual jar underneath grey materials and glass pieces)

As I have been struggling considering technical methods of making my BROKEN-UNBROKEN IDEA come true(I am still not sure what materials would be best to fill up cracks and gaps in-between cracks—so, (eventually) to build/repair the broken objects just as like the original shape again.

Unfortunately, broken each piece is hard to be fixed at the right spot, without enough support….. The materials should be strong enough to hold pieces as I put and fix —> THEN, I can try to build up more pieces higher and wider —> THEN, I can complete the object to the top.

Considered materials —> Clay/ Cemente/Silicon(glue gun)……..???

6.

The Apple Box Case.

Thebriberyincident/scandal/case involving a previous president caused astir throughoutthenation in 1996 in South Korea.

<1> Meaning of Apple Box in Korea.

Ithashistoricalresonance, andironicovertones.

Apple boxes in Korea are sometime called ‘Korean Magic Box’ because they were used as a Means of transporting bribes. ‘Apple delivery’ trucks sometimes carried massive amounts of money; the boxes became a byword for ‘Bribe’ as their size is perfect for carrying a bundle of paper money.

The trend, paying off the bribe in apple boxes became popular after the enforcement of the real-name financial transaction system in Korea because then no one can create account not revealing ID, whereas before the system, check book with some amount of money without account holder’s name could be given to another. Cash was moved around in the apple boxes as it seems casual gifts that Korean people usually exchange on special occasions like National Holidays and Thanks Giving days.

One apple box can hold more than £ 1.5million in 10,000 won notes (about £7)

It got much more, once 50,000won notes issued after.

Now more than £608,490.88 with 50,000 won notes (about £30)

The unique use of apple boxes became known to public through ‘a previous president of Korea, Jeon’s secret funds scandal’ in 1996.

7.

An interesting Korean issue on BBC.

‘Nut rage’: Korean Air ex-executive Cho Hyun-ah detained.

30 December 2014 Last updated at 17:07

A former Korean Air executive who delayed a plane over how nuts were served has been detained. TV footage showed Cho Hyun-ah being led away, shortly after a court in South Korea granted a warrant for her arrest. Ms Cho, the daughter of Korean Air’s chief executive, is being charged with violating aviation safety law and impeding crew in their duties. She ordered the plane to turn back on the runway in New York after nuts were served in a bag, not on a plate. She hasdeniedphysically assaulting the chief steward, Park Chang-jin, who says she made him kneel and beg for forgiveness before jabbing him with a document folder.

A government investigation found that Ms Cho screamed and shouted abuse at a flight attendant after he served her macadamia nuts in a bag. She then ordered the plane to go back to the terminal at New York’s JFK airport to offload the attendant, who was fired on the spot before the plane proceeded on its journey. He has since been reinstated.

The incident forced the flight to Seoul to be delayed. Her father, Korean Air chairman Cho Yang-Ho, has apologised for his daughter’s “foolish act”. Mr Cho also said his daughter would step down from all her posts in companies under the Cho family-owned Hanjin Group, which also owns Korean Air.

The Hanjin Group is one of South Korea’s top family conglomerates, called chaebol. Correspondents say the incident has started a debate in South Korea about whether the country’s large family firms unduly favour the children of the owners.

——————————————————————————————————-

Korean Air executive ‘made steward kneel over nut rage’

13 December 2014Last updated at 17:02

Describing the incident for the first time, the head steward said the company had tried to persuade him to change his story. The incident has sparked anger and mockery across South Korea.

‘Insulted and shamed’

“People who haven’t experienced [such abuse] will not understand that feeling of being insulted and shamed,” head steward Park Chang-jin told South Korea’s KBS television network. After being confronted about the nuts, he said he was made to kneel down in front of the executive before Ms Cho yelled for the crew to “call right now and stop the plane”.

“I will stop this plane from leaving,” she is said to have shouted.

Mr Park said that in such a situation, he did not dare to refuse the “owner’s daughter”. He left the plane and returned to South Korea on a different flight. Once home, officials from the airline came to his home to ask him to say that Ms Cho did not use abusive language and that he had voluntarily got off the plane, he said.

Korean Air initially defended Ms Cho, noting that she was responsible for overseeing flight service in her role as vice-president, but the company later apologised.

What is the truth?

I researched on this case, reading all the relevant information provided on media.

But the more I research, the more confusion I seem to have, because information by different sources provides different stories, depending on their aims and perspectives.

The truth is at somewhere far, where I can hardly reach. Although this case would be concluded anyway, we can never be sure if everything has come out into the open, if everyone has paid a penalty as they deserved and if that’s the end of the real story.